Freyja's Fire - Chapter 20 - A'mara Books

20

(Wirnday, cont)
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“Kolt,” Gemina called from the back of her horse. “I’m falling asleep.”

“Then we shall find a place to rest,” he replied.

Gemina forced her eyes to remain open as he led the way, still without clothing. But the hours on horseback, watching his naked body – whether in front of her, to the side, or (Vasana help her) behind her – it no longer had the shock value it had the first couple of times she saw him. It didn’t mean she couldn’t still appreciate his hard, handsome body whenever she caught a glimpse of him.

At last, he dismounted next to a patch of soft grass. He quickly started a fire, then put their rollmats as close as he dared.

Gemina secured the horses, then unpacked some of the food. She sat on one of the mats. They had yet to argue about which one belonged to whom.

“How do you cope when you get cold, Kolt?”

“I don’t often get cold,” he replied.

“You built a fire.”

“Mostly for your comfort,” he said. “When I travel alone, I don’t bother. I find insulation in the wilderness – enough to keep me warm.”

“Thank you,’ she said.

“For what?” he asked, stopping a moment.

“Everything,” Gemina said. “I wouldn’t know the first thing about surviving out here!”

“You’d be surprised at how much instinct kicks in,” Kolt said, offering her some jerky.

“Thank you,” she said, taking it.

The fire crackled merrily as Gemina sat eating the jerky. She drank water from her canteen. Sitting next to Kolt meant she didn’t have to look at his handsome figure, didn’t have to fully come to terms with his aversion to clothing. Instead, she stared at the flames as they licked the dry wood they had found not too far from their campsite.

“Obviously, you no longer live in the rainforest,” Gemina said. “I mean, before you came to be shipwrecked on our shore.”

“One day, after the floods, I was looking for food when I was spotted by Captain Heath when they were camping near my river. I was scared – scared that I would be killed, but I was hungry. Hunger won out. I joined them at their fire and they fed me. Captain Heath, his son Garrick and daughter Raven.”

Gemina found herself moving closer to Kolt, until her knee bumped into his naked thigh. “Sorry,” she said automatically.

“It’s okay,” he replied.

“So, did Captain Heath try to get you into clothing?”

“The Captain took me back to his ship, the Abundantia. He also introduced me to the loincloth. It would be more appropriate for when we were in port, but as soon as we were at sea, I was allowed to be naked again.”

“Were there no women on board?” Gemina asked.

“Oh, we had chambermaids. Raven was on board too.”

“They didn’t have problems with you being naked?”

“They got used to it,” Kolt replied. “Raven was the second most beautiful woman I remember knowing.” Gemina saw the look in his face grow more wistful.

“What happened?” she asked, somehow sensing that he had loved her.

“She died. I had to let them send her and our unborn baby to feed the fish,” he said faltering.

Gemina grabbed his hand sympathetically. “I’m sorry,” she said softly. Tears dripped down her cheeks.

“A piece of me died that day. A piece I will never get back,” he said.

“They live in your heart,” Gemina said. “I can tell.”

He nodded.

“I’ve never met someone like you.” Gemina said, thinking about everything she had learned about him since he awoke that morning. She leaned over and kissed his smooth cheek. “You don’t shave.”

“My tribe don’t grow beards for some reason,” he replied. “I hope it’s to your liking.”

Gemina nodded, then kissed his lips. He responded hungrily, covering her mouth with his, tasting her until she parted her lips to let him in. She felt his tongue invade, feeling her mouth, her teeth, her tongue which tasted the meat still on his breath as well as his natural musky odor.

Her arms went around his smooth body, draped by his long hair.

His warm hands worked their way down inside the back of her dress. Her sleeves drooped off her shoulders. She wondered whether the firm peaks of her nipples would be released against his chest before long. She wouldn’t do anything to prevent it though. It felt right. He was the one – and it was time.

A rustling sound was heard from the tall grass.

Kolt pulled away from her and located the source of the rustling. He grabbed Adrick’s knife and dove into the grasses. A few moments later, he came out with a large nutria.

He quickly skinned and gutted it. Then he placed it on a sharpened stick over the fire. Then he carefully rolled up the skin and tied it to the horse’s pack harness. Finally, he sat next to Gemina again. “The jerky is amazing, but nothing compares to fresh roasted meat!”

“You’re amazing, Kolt!” Gemina said watching the fire lap up the bits of fat that melted from the dead rodent.

“I’m showing off a little,” Kolt admitted. “But you’re really something too.” He looked at her intensely, his long hair streaming down his bare chest.

Gemina wasn’t sure how to take his words. She wasn’t much, just a royal who wouldn’t inherit anything more than a place to live.

“It’s not everyone who would be willing to ride a horse into the Fire Swamps with a complete stranger. Even fewer royals would be willing to do such a thing. You tended me when I was sick, and couldn’t do anything for myself. You became my servant. Yet, it is I who should be doing the serving. Ask anything of me and I will do it.”

Gemina shivered, both from the cold and from the sincerity she saw in Kolt’s face reflecting the bright firelight. Now was the time. Did she dare tell him what she really wanted from him? Handsome images flashed through her head.

When he was still a patient, she had needed to attend his nakedness. After that, he had surprised her a few times with his preference regarding clothing. He was a handsome man in every aspect she knew very well, even though she had only seen a naked man a couple of times – each time resulting in embarrassment on both sides.